


The Face-Off

by pizarra



Series: The Warlock's Bane [6]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dark, Dark Arthur, Minor Character Death, Powerful Merlin, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-01
Updated: 2014-08-01
Packaged: 2018-02-11 08:24:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2060979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pizarra/pseuds/pizarra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin takes the battle to Arthur to save Leon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Face-Off

_Six Weeks Ago_

This is all his fault. Arthur should never have left Merlin's side, should never have gone to North Umbria. Arthur seethes as a knight reports suspicions of more citizens crossing the borders to the Perilous Lands. Ever since Merlin escaped him and took hold of the Kingdom of Elmet, more and more people are crossing the borders to seek refuge in the Kingdom of Elmet.

"But they always disappear once they reach the border, Sire," the knight continues. "And-and we can't come nearer than ten miles from the border. Something...always stops us."

"And you never thought to catch them _before they reach the border?_ " Arthur demands.

"We can't-it's like something is protecting them from us, Sire. We tried using arrows, but..."

"You always miss?" Arthur guesses, voice low with anger.

The knight gulps, but trudges on. "Yes, Sire. And we put our best archers forward, my lord."

Arthur clenches his fists. Merlin must have figured out a spell to protect the Perilous Lands from them. His troops have used every passage shown in every map they own, but they still can't get through. And how can Merlin possibly protect that many people in that wide range?

Merlin is getting stronger by the day. He's getting nearer to his destiny as Emrys, and he has learned plenty in a matter of weeks.

This is what the Sidhe had warned him about. This...problem. Camelot is falling, one fleeing citizen at a time, and it is all his fault. He should have _chained_ Merlin to him.

He dismisses the knight, and thinks of a way to get Merlin back in his control.

 

\----------==========----------

 

_Now_

Merlin decides to go alone.

If he ever gets captured, at least the rest of the people are safe. He's prepared for every scenario possible, even his death, and he has placed a hierarchy in motion if he doesn't come back at all. His friends and family are safe, and the people of Camelot will no longer fear from an evil king. They can go to Elmet and be taken care of.

Provided that they can run away from Arthur.

His mother cried. Percival tried to keep a watch on him, but a simple sleeping spell made the huge knight slump in his post.

He needs to do this alone. No one will die in his name today.

As he floats along the forest on his way to Camelot, he can hear the trees' whispers of suffering, remnants of tired citizens defecting from an evil tyrant, of hungry children running towards a better place.

The Perilous Lands are perilous no more. He drained the curse from the lands and returned it clean and healthy and safe. Plants are now starting to grow, crops can be put in the soil, and even some animals have shown up from somewhere to graze the grass. The people of Camelot now has a safe haven far from Arthur's clutch.

They still call him king, still treats him as royalty, even when he's forbidden them from doing so. They see him as their saviour.

Today, he hopes to prove them right.

He looks up at the castle as he reaches the heavy gates. The city is no longer the bustling place it was before. The place is dreary despite the sun shining bright, and the people are all looking down, not stopping to talk to anybody.

Someone bumps into him, but doesn't recognize him. He's relieved to know that the glamour he's enchanted on himself holds. He wonders what he looks like to the people who see him today.

 

\----------==========----------

 

Merlin finds them assembled in the middle of the courtyard where an executioner’s block is waiting for a life to take. He breathes deep, knowing that this time, he can no longer avoid violence. This time, he will deliberately commit murder.

He whispers an invisibility spell and then flies to the southern battlement to better see things. Arthur is nowhere to be seen, nor is Leon.

Then, the trumpets sound. Arthur walks out to the balcony to face his people, people he is forcing to attend this massacre. He is followed by a young, blonde girl, about ten years of age. He frowns. He releases some magic to connect with the soul of this girl, but finds that she’s covered in strong dark magic. How typically a Pendragon of Arthur, to ally himself with a powerful sorceress to get what he wants. Merlin clenches his fist in anger at the injustice of this all.

“Take out the prisoner!” Arthur shouts.

Knights haul Leon out, the former knight’s legs dragging behind him. From Merlin’s vantage point, Leon looks unconscious, and his bare chest is caked with mud and blood. He slumps on the wooden stage as the knights release their hold, and Merlin is afraid that he’s too late.

“Look at him, people. Look at the result of treason. Leon, former knight of Camelot, conspired with my former wife to overthrow me, kidnapped King Merlin, and turned him against me. Look at him and know that he’s a traitor to us all.

For his crimes, I am sentencing him to death by execution. May the gods forgive him.”

A memory of a time long past slips into Merlin’s head. His first day in Camelot, an execution, and a person who will stop this madness. He has never felt the weight of his destiny more than he does now.

Merlin raises his right hand, pulling as much power of the earth as he can into the palm of his hand, before he releases it. The ground shakes, the wooden stage falls into pieces, and the northern turret crumbles.

Pandemonium ensues, the people wanting to hide, but scared of the guards blocking their way; the knights running around trying to find the source. And Arthur is holding on the low balcony wall, frowning and shouting at his knights.

He, then, raises both his hands to call forth a mighty wind, a force so potent that rocks and wood and shingles get carried into its depths, circling around each other but never meeting. Merlin watches in satisfaction as the wind lifts Leon from the debris to take him to Elmet where his mother will take care of him.

Merlin lowers his hand and all the magic stops—the ground stands still, the wind is reduced to a breeze. He drops the glamour, and after a whispered spell, says, “Arthur.” Everyone turns their head to his direction. His voice can be heard from the square to the deepest parts of the dungeons. People start pointing, some are crying, the knights and guards are running toward him, but his attention is all on Arthur.

Once the king catches Merlin’s eye, he sends a dark and dangerous smirk at him. He says something, and although the king is too far away for him to hear, he can see the word clearly: Merlin.

“That is enough, Arthur. You’ve caused too much suffering on your people. That is enough.”

The crowd has hushed, and Merlin can feel their eyes on him. He hopes he’s doing the right thing.

“Merlin, are you ready to come back and forget all these ever happened? I am a forgiving King, Merlin.”

He shakes his head. “Arthur, for your tyranny and cruelty, I hereby sentence you to death…by my hand.”

The crowd gasps. The knights get closer, but he raises his hands again and uses their own energy against them. With a clench of his fists, the knights crash into each other like marionettes.

“Surrender now, Arthur,” he continues, “or you shall rue the day you made an enemy of me.”

To his surprise, Arthur laughs. He just laughs and laughs and laughs, and it takes Merlin back to those dark times in the king’s chambers, being forced to beg as Arthur finds merriment in his agony. “Will you never learn, Merlin? You cannot defeat me. Do you think you saved anybody?” Arthur signals to someone behind him, and three knights step forward. One of the knights take off the helm of the knight in the middle.

It’s Leon.

In his usual knight’s garb, but with a bloody face and grimy jaw. Leon, who seeks Merlin’s eyes and yells at him to run.

The little girl, who has blended into the background since she stepped onto the balcony, lifts a hand and then turns it in one swift movement.

Leon’s neck twists, and he hears the snap of his spine.

“No!” Merlin shouts, making the ground rumble.

Leon’s broken body slumps on the cold stones.

Everything slows down and gets magnified. He sees Arthur’s leer, he feels the girl’s dark influence, he smells the stench of oozing blood. The air gets colder, and the wind gets stronger, and Merlin doesn’t realize that he’s pulling on the magic of the earth until he feels the first drops of rain on his cheeks. He raised his arm, gathering up a storm, then swiftly brings it down, a lightning following his command and slicing through the stones of the castle.

The knights on the balcony grab the girl, and then run inside, but Arthur stays put and cackles with glee. “You may be powerful now, Merlin, but that power will soon be mine again. As foretold by the Sidhe, it will come to pass!” With a final billow of his cloak, Arthur leaves Merlin standing on the battlement, rainwater sluicing down his face, mixing with his tears.

**Author's Note:**

> Guys, this [map](http://archiveofourown.org/works/1037453/chapters/2069264) from [versaphile](http://archiveofourown.org/users/versaphile/pseuds/versaphile) was really helpful, and I was wondering how to credit them. Is this enough? Do I send a message? Your help is appreciated!
> 
> Also, thank you so much for reading!


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